


The Rise of Voltron

by KataraTakaran



Series: In the Name of the Moon [2]
Category: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Multi, Welcome, alternative universe, eveeryone has pony names bc reasons, ill add thems in the notes, more tags to come, than a crossover, this is more an
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-22
Updated: 2017-11-10
Packaged: 2019-01-04 00:28:06
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,914
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12157893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KataraTakaran/pseuds/KataraTakaran
Summary: [ Everything is the same... But the Paladins are small, pastel horses]It's been a year since Equestria lost three of their most talented to the moon Kerberos. 12 moons. And while that certainly isn't enough to grieve, life goes on. But more dangers loom ahead. Dangers that may even give the Princesses a run for their money. Dangers that need... a 'certain someone' to stop.





	1. One Year Later

**Author's Note:**

> Handy dandy name chart:  
> Lance | Azure-Blue  
> Keith | Luxfite  
> Shiro | Prince Silverwing  
> Pidge | Pigeon Catcher  
> Hunk | Sunlit Honey  
> Iverson | Ivy Skies

“This is craft ‘Crystal Heart’, on the approach to Kerberos,” Azure-Blue stated for the record. “It is 11 am, CE, and all processes are running smooth.”

Below the ship, the icy plutonian moon stared up at them, waiting, daring them to try.

“We’ve got the Harmony on the radar, locking onto target coordinates.” Pigeon Catcher announced. “Coordinates are go.”

“Beginning descent.” Azure eased the stick into position. His magic held steady, letting him use his hooves to start the varying processes needed. A sudden bang near the rear of the ship forced him to correct for the sequential banking.

“Azure, c’mon, keep this thing straight!” Sunlit Honey complained behind him.

“Nope, buddy, that’s on you. Rear right stabilizer just blew.” Azure kept his focus on the planet and the descent as Sunlit swallowed his nerves and his nervous stomach, and stood. He set into the problem area at once. “Pigeon, let them know we’re coming in hot.”

“Given the circumstances, I wouldn’t suggest pressing forward, Azure.” Pigeon stared at him through his coke-bottle lenses.

“I got this, _we_ got this!” He had it! “Honey, how’s it looking back there?”

“It’s- ugh-” The golden stallion had to stop himself from vomiting. “I need the ship to stop shaking!”

“The ship will stop shaking when you fix the stabilizer.” Azure pressed forward. Pigeon sighed, long suffering and exasperated, before unclipping himself. He had to stand in his chair to reach the rather high-mounted communication receiver. An impressively large lurch succeeded in sending the green earthpony into the floor. It also crossed Sunlit’s tolerance level, and the smell of bile filled the small room. “What are you doing? Buckle yourself back in!”

Pigeon reseated himself and opened the communications while he rubbed at the flank that had taken the brunt of the fall. “This is the ‘Crystal Heart’, responding to the Harmony’s SOS signal. We are on the approach, despite crew recommendations.”

“Hey hey, no mutiny!” Azure chided. He kept pressing forward, turning the ship’s nose ever closer to the surface of Kerberos. The jagged, almost mountainous surface loomed before them.

“What are you doing?!” Pigeon snapped, “Watch out for that outcropping!”

“They’re going down and we’re going in,” Azure explained. “I’ve got this! You know what they called me first year of flight school? They called me The Tailor, because of how I thread the needle~”

That shut him up, one way or another. He was allowed to focus, and to carefully steer the ship through the treacherous terrain. Except, with the stabilizer still out, he wasn’t turning fast enough. The wing rose way too slowly, through hard vibrations and incredible banking. “Come on, come on-”

It didn’t listen. With a resounding crunch, he lost a wing, which Pigeon announced loudly, and sent the three of them spiralling out of control to their deaths.

They sat there a moment, silent as the blackened windows lightened to expose the testing hall.

“Alright cadets, get out here.” The rear door opened, letting in the brighter lights of the hall. The three stood at attention before the instructor, as sanitization unicorns rushed into the little cockpit. The unicorns in charge of the simulation process were laughing among themselves. “So who among us can tell me how these three went wrong?”

Commander Ivy Skies stared out across the gathered class, single eye sharp and hard. The grey-green pegasus was not impressed in the least.

“The mechanic puked in the engine box.” A blue pegasus in the third row stated.

“Correct. As we all know, vomit is _not_ an approved lubricant.” Sunlit’s head dipped in shame. “Anything else?”

“The Communicator unbuckled himself, causing a fall and injury.” A white unicorn from the first row.

“Correct. And worst of all, the three were arguing the entire jump! The Harmony may have been piloted by three equally green rookies, but they could at least harmonize long enough to actually get out there!”

“Hey-” Pigeon snapped, stepping out of line. Aggression bristled his fur, but Azure didn’t hesitate to pull him back.

“Do you have something to say to me, Cadet?” Commander Ivy Skies glared down at the smallest of the trio.

“No, no sir!” Azure was quick to assure. “I think he’s just a little confused, maybe hit his head when he fell?” His smile was strong and certain.

“Hmf. As for _your_ little display today,” He rounded on Azure instead, “what kind of talentless idiot do you have to be to think you can land on one stabilizer? May I remind you that you’re only here because your predecessor had discipline issues? Luxfite was a prodigy. We would have no issues tossing out a pony for pure incompetence.”

Azure cowed his head, accepting his statement. Thin ice, got it.

“Next.” The sani-corns were done. The next trio of ponies could begin their simulation.

* * *

C’mon, Sunlit. You heard Ivy. We’re a shitty team.” Azure pulled into his jacket. “A night on the town, though? We’ll put the Mane 6 to shame.”

“I dunno-” Sunlit was strapping on his saddlebags even so. “Getting caught after curfew? We’re not exactly in the good books right now. It would mean our educational careers.”

“Our educational careers are over regardless, if we can’t pick up the slack.” Azure replied with all seriousness. Sunlit couldn’t really argue. “Come on. Let’s grab Pigeon, then take Apploosa by storm. Mares, Pizza, and Good Times.”

They exited their dorm room with five minutes to spare. An instructor was just calling out the warning as they slipped around the corner.

Pigeon’s room was on the far side of the dorm halls. Getting there involved sneaking past a filled instructor lounge. Princess Luna herself was there, speaking with several instructors. Even if they weren’t part of the conversation, pretty much everyone in the room was listening in at the very least. It was easy to sneak past.

They almost got caught by a patrolling guard, but Azure was quick enough to get a hologram spell up before they noticed. The guard didn’t question the pony-coloured trashcans, and continued along their path. Azure and Sunlit vacated before they could change their mind.

Pigeon Catcher, however, was just leaving as they rounded the corner. His little body was weighed down with heavy satchels that would look more reasonable on Sunlit.

Azure hummed contemplatively, then chased after. Sunlit was hardly about to be left behind this far from their rooms.

Pigeon set up on the roof. He had all kinds of fancy equipment in his bag, none of which looked very familiar. He plopped a set of earphones on, and set to work. Notes on whatever he listened to, many vibrating crystals and amplification disks. Lots of focus. Azure barely had to sneak.

“Whatchya doin’, rocking out?” He pulled an earphone free to murmur directly in Pigeon’s ear. The way Pigeon lurched was more than reward enough. He laughed as the tiny green earthpony calmed down.

“What are you doing up here?!” He demanded. “What do you _want_ , Azure?”

“I could ask you the same.” He teased. “But nah, we were going to collect you for a night out. But you were already sneaking out, so we followed.”

“This all looks super cool and advanced... but it’s nothing like the setups we have downstairs?” Sunlit crept into reach from behind Azure, eyes wide and bright.

“Of course not.” Pigeon smacked his hoof away when he reached out. “I made all this myself. With these babies, I can hear everything between here and the edge of the solar system.” He looked awful proud. The description only made Sunlit want to inspect it more. Pigeon smacked his hoof away again.

“The edge of the solar system, huh? You mean like Kerberos?” Azure pressed. Pigeon’s face dropped, he didn’t want to talk about it. “What’s your deal with that anyways? You get so touchy about it.”

“Just because we’ve lost contact doesn’t mean they’re dead. Anything could happen to separate the Harmony from their homing crystal. They could be adrift in space, looking for rescue, but because everyone thinks they’re dead, no one’s listening.

“So I come here at night, listening for some kind of signal. I get a lot of radio chatter, but not all of it is ours.” Pigeon stared at the stars for a long minute. “ _Sunlit Honey if you do not stop touching my shit right now I swear to Celestia-_ ”

Sunlit dropped to the floor, defeated.

“You mean like Zebra and Yak not ours, or like, Alien not ours?”

“Alien. Completely Alien Chatter. And tonight it’s been going wilder than I’ve ever heard it. And they keep saying this one word over and over again.” He held up his notepad. Surrounded by bored doodles was a sequence of binary and an entirely unfamiliar term. “Voltron.”

Azure considered. Sunlit did no such thing.

“Aliens? Aliens don’t really exist. Not in this system. If they did, the Academy would’ve told us. Right, Azure? Of course I am.”

“Whats a Voltron?” Azure asked instead.

“I dunno. But it’s the hot topic of the night. I’ve heard it before, but never like this.”

“Cool. I appreciate the effort, totally. Obviously this is your jam. But once you’re done here, wanna go grab pizza? I’d take on a manticore for a garlic knot.” Pigeon eyed him warily, then returned to his work without answering.

“... Guys is it me or is that star getting bigger?” Sunlit’s dark hoof was barely visible in the dark night sky, but what he pointed out was violently visible.

Something was breaching the atmosphere.

Pigeon started, then grabbed a pair of binoculars from his satchel. The UFO was dark and foreboding, and moved fast.

“It’s an alien ship,” He announced just before it impacted on the far side of an outcropping plateau. Purple light filtered through the settling dust cloud, and reflected off the sandstone walls of the canyon.

“Come on come on come on!” Pigeon jammed his equipment into his bags, and burst off running the moment it was securely on his back.

“We’re coming-!” Azure galloped immediately after. Sunlit hesitated briefly, but followed as well.

* * *

Dust was still settling as Starlit Space Academy was put on lockdown. Princess Luna stayed with her students, as her Starlit raced out into the desert to investigate. She wished to guard them too, but someone had to keep watch in case of an attack.

They found a ship crashed into the desert floor. An obviously extraterrestrial ship. They began investigating at once, setting up tents and donning biohazard suits, protecting everyone and everything in proxy. Except for three young colts hidden on a nearby ridge.

“Pigeon, can you get us visuals inside the tent?” Azure asked. They couldn’t see anything from up here, and there were too many higher-ranking ponies down there keeping the under-qualified well and away.

Pigeon was quick to nod, and quicker to access the recording crystal that would be mounted in the top of the main tent.

The instructors had a dark pony strapped to a medical gurney. He wore a skintight suit that covered his cutie mark, and was ragged about the edges, but there was no mistaking him with those bicoloured wings.

“Is that- is that Prince Silverwing? I love that guy! He’s my hero!” Azure gasped behind Pigeon. Pigeon responded by authorizing himself for audio as well as video.

“-Ease, Please! Listen to me!” Silverwing sounded so frightened.

“Silverwing, we need you to relax. Do you know how long you were gone?” Ivy Skies took over the questioning.

“I don’t know, months? Years? All I know is that the aliens, the Galra, are coming. They’re coming, and they want Voltron! Voltron is here, on Terrein, and we need to find it before they do, or else the universe is doomed! Where’s Princess Luna, she’ll vouch for me-!”

“Sir, look at this.” Another instructor, Rosewood, Azure thought, pointed at Silverwing’s right foreleg. It cut off just below the shoulder, and had been replaced with something jarringly steel. “It seems to be a prosthesis of some kind, though it’s connected too solidly to remove.”

“Put him under. I want to know the full extent of what that is and what it does before we continue.” Ivy Skies had officially stopped listening to Silverwing, who’d been ranting the entire time he was sidelined.

“No no, no, stop, please! The Galra are coming to take Voltron! We have to stop them!” No one was listening now. Rosewood was gentle, but professionally so as she injected a sedative.

“Calm down, Silverwing. Everything will be alright when you wake again.” She soothed. Silverwing was having none of that, and fought every second he was conscious.

“Where’s the rest of his crew?” Pigeon demanded. “Why aren’t they listening to him? There is no conceivable way that ship was ours, clearly he’s not spewing complete bull?”

“He looked terrified...” Azure swallowed hard.

“He never said exactly when the Aliens are coming... do you think the news will get back to the princesses in time?” Sunlit asked. His eyes were wide, and all four of his knees were trying their best not to knock together as they shook slightly.

“Dunno... I think we should something to help. Like break in and rescue him or something.”

“And how do you propose we do that, Azure?” Sunlit asked very reasonably, “Aren’t we standing here, bootlegging off a crystal signal, since we can’t get in personally just to watch?”

“We’d need a-” Speaking of distractions, a bright flash of light caught his eye before he could finish. By the time he focused on it, the sharp cracks of explosions were ringing in his ears.

“The Aliens-!” Sunlit expected the worst.

“No, It’s a distraction.” Pigeon could tell they were in no immediate danger. The explosions were loud, bright and noticable, but not nearly close enough to hurt anyone. As the ponies in and around the tents ran to investigate, a lone pegasus dropped from a nearby rise. Slipping in was easy when there were no guards.

Azure squinted a moment, then jacked Pigeon’s binoculars. He protested, and refused to let go, but Azure did have a moment to see. He lowered the binoculars a moment later, disgusted.

“I’d know that scruffy mane and those terrible fetlocks anywhere!” He growled, and leaped over the crest of the ridge they hid on. Pigeon and Sunlit exchanged a confused glance, then followed.

“What?” Pigeon asked as they caught up with Azure.

“Luxfite. That _foal_ is always one-upping me at everything! But not this time.”

* * *

Luxfite entered to find two biohazard-clad ponies tending the contents of the spaceship. He made short work of them with a few kicks. The unconcious pony on the table was familiar.

His forelock and wingtips had gone from silver to pale lavender. A hard, vibrant scar streaked across his nose. A steely prosthesis replaced his right foreleg. But it was, undeniably, Silverwing.

“You’re alive.” He breathed, and hardly believed it even so. His knife, tucked in wait under his pinions, cut through the restraints like hot butter. He began to shoulder Silverwing’s not-so-dead weight, when three more ponies barged into the room.

He was more than willing to fight his way out. He already had his knife out even.

“No, no, no, we’re rescuing him.” The blue unicorn shifted the table out of the way, and tried to take Silverwing from him.

“... Who are you?” He was hardly about to relinquish Silverwing to anyone, nevermind some uppity half-pint’s say-so.

“I’m Azure-Blue, your Rival!” He announced himself.

“Not ringing any bells.” And definitely not convincing him to relinquish Silverwing. He stared at the unicorn, unimpressed.

“You know, Azure-Blue and Luxfite, neck and neck, we did first year of flight school together!” He immediately got indignant. Luxfite blinked slowly, trying to recall. It took a minute.

“Oh, wait, you’re that Balloon Pilot.”

“I’m Star Class now! All thanks to you washing out.” Azure was really good at being indignant.

“Congrats, I guess.”

“Guys, hate to break up the reunion, but the instructors are coming back, and they really, really don’t look happy!” The giant, yellow earthpony interrupted.

“I brought my skybike. It’s over the next ridge.” Luxfite dashed out of the room. Azure had to make fast tracks to keep holding Silverwing’s other half.

Luxfite made short work of revealing his bike from tumbleweed and rocks. Azure got to hold Silverwing himself for a whole minute, to his utmost glee. The skybike itself wasn’t very large. Two ponies tops. But the instructors had noticed their losses, and the unconscious ponies left behind.

“Think this’ll hold all five of us?” Pigeon hopped aboard anyways. Sunlit tried to follow his lead, and disbalanced the bike briefly.

“No.” Luxfite grumbled. Azure balanced it out by draping Silverwing over the center of the craft, and balancing himself precariously. They took off just as a swarm of pegasi took to the air behind them.

“Faster, faster! Can’t this thing go any faster?!” Azure shouted over the wind. “They’re gaining on us!”

“We could lose some non-essential weight!” He called back pointedly. He found brief amusement as Azure looked about for something that could be tossed, only to realize a moment later that he was among the non-essentials Luxfite meant.

“Hey-!”

“Heh, Big guy! Lean right!” The shift in weight let him turn much faster than the pursuers. Two collided into a cliff face. “Now left!” They swung up a mountainous plateau face. Two more pegasi collided, this time with one another. Trying to follow. One left.

Commander Ivy Skies was shouting for them to stop. But he was blind on one side. Luxfite was not, and had extra weight as well.

“Hey- watch out for that cliff!” someone yelled behind him. He grinned widely.

“Nope.” They shot off it immediately after, plummeting to their deaths. Amid buffeting winds and sharp decline, he could hear their screams. Luxfite savoured them and the heavy crosswinds. Then he caught them last second, and sent them zooming off into the dark of the night.

Ivy Skies could only watch, unable to fly this part of the plateaus without a second eye.


	2. Blue Lion Caves

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Handy dandy name chart:  
> Lance | Azure-Blue  
> Keith | Luxfite  
> Shiro | Prince Silverwing  
> Pidge | Pigeon Catcher  
> Hunk | Sunlit Honey  
> Iverson | Ivy Skies

Silverwing awoke on the softest bed he’d laid on in ages. It was a slow process, pulling free of his drugged state, and finally reaching consciousness. There was no whining, whimpering or talking as he did so. He’d been given a solitary cell.

A good hour in, a spring began to dig into his side. He ignored it as long as he could, but it eventually won out, and he had to move. He had to open his tired eyes, and sit up to wedge the offending wire back into place. He was on a couch, not a bed.

And he wasn’t alone. A strikingly familiar pink pegasus laid beside the couch, fast asleep. A blue unicorn had come to a rest on the far wall of the one-roomed shack. A massive yellow earthpony blocked the door with their mass, and a tiny green earthpony muffled their snoring with their body.

Outside a half-covered window, the sky was just starting to lighten with the first dregs of false dawn. His breath caught when he realized the shapes the stars made.

He was home.

The window opened enough to crawl out without waking anyone. There was a narrow porch that housed a skybike and an old rocking chair. The porch creaked some as he trotted off it, but held. The desert was icy from the long, dark night. Sand on his hooves was welcome, though. Moreso was the small dune. It gave him an excellent view as the sun broke the horizon; and about the same time, the moon dropped below it. Two sisters in perfect harmony.

He was _Home_.

He stood there a long while, soaking in the bright day as it began. It was only when he was good and warm that he realized two things. One, he was still dressed in a ragged shirt, and a tight, itchy, dirty compression suit. He was all too happy to remove it, discarding the alien fabric in the sand. The other thing he noticed was the distinct lack of warmth through his right foreleg. Once he had his suit off, it became obvious.

A metal leg replaced it, cool and shiney. It obeyed his intent, moving, twisting and grasping. It could even feel pressure, just not heat.

The soft rustle of wings alerted him to company. Luxfite hovered beside him, magenta eyes wide with worry. Each flap of his wings rustled against his freshly freed fur.

“Are you alright?” Luxfite asked, finally.

“As well as I can be.” He wasn’t perfect, but he suspected the smaller pegasus understood.

“So where were you? What happened?”

“I don’t... I don’t remember, really. It’s all very muddled...?” He paused for a quiet moment. “How did you know where to find me?”

“... I think you should just come and see.”

* * *

Inside the cabin again, the other three ponies were awake. Blue and Yellow chattered quietly between themselves, and Green was fiddling with some bobble with exposed wires. Silverwing’s arrival attracted the three sets of eyes. He instantly felt compelled to act and play his part, rather than just be.

“You’re awake!” Yellow exclaimed.

“You’re safe!” Blue and Green expressed their relief simultaneously. Likely they’d worried when they woke to find him missing. He nodded, assuring them he was fine.

“I am Prince Silverwing. I’m afraid I don’t know who you are.” Hopefully they weren’t pre-kerberos companions. Blue and Yellow both grinned, but for a very brief second, Green’s face showed disappointment before warming into a polite smile.

“Azure-Blue,” Blue hopped forward, “I’m a Huge fan.” Silverwing couldn’t suppress a fond smile at that. He extended a hoof, and Azure jumped at the chance to shake it. He hesitated briefly at the prosthesis, but that was fair.

“Sunlit Honey,” He denied a hoof-shake, instead wrapping his foreleg about Green. “And this is Pigeon Catcher.”

That didn’t sound right.

“Do you know where the rest of your crew is?” Pigeon demanded. “What happened out there?”

“I’m sorry.” He grimaced lightly, “But I don’t remember right now. It’s all very muddled. A lot happened. To be honest, I’m not even sure how long I was gone.”

“One year,” Luxfite provided. “Almost exactly.”

“Only a- nevermind.” He shook his head. “So, Lux. What is it you wanted to show me?”

“Well,” Luxfite didn’t have to fly to cross the small room, but he did anyways. He hovered beside a large sheet covering most of the wall. “Since I started exploring the desert, there’s been this weird energy. It keeps drawing me to one corner of the desert, at the base of some of the plateau cliffs.”

The sheet came down with a flourish. Pictures and notes, dozens of each, pinned together with red yarn and redder ink. Some of the pictures were of the cliff face itself, others were of a cave that was probably in the area. Blue Lions seemed to dominate the imagery.

“One of the caves seemed to depict an arrival of sorts; it took some puzzling, but it pointed to yesterday, just after sundown.” He pointed at a couple pictures of a starmap and an explosion with a comet’s tail. “I hid in the area, and it ended up being you, Silverwing.”

“So you planted bombs for the sake of some desert voodoo whispering in your ears?” Azure was highly skeptical.

“I figured I might need a distraction, since it was pretty close to the Academy.” He didn’t even look sorry.

Sunlit wasn’t particularly interested in bomb talk, not when the one picture was catching his eyes. “Hey-” He interrupted both Silverwing’s scold and Azure’s retort, “that cliff looks familiar, just a sec-” Face down in his bag, and hardly dignified, “I was snooping in Pigeon’s bag, and while his diary is adorable, there was a sequence of numbers in it that didn’t make sense, so I mapped them out. Look at this plot.”

His sheet of paper came free, showing a graph. “It reads as a Fraunhofer Line, an elemental spectrum for something that doesn’t exist on earth!” The line was almost exactly matched with the cliff face as it was photographed.

“My dia- wait. Those are the numbers I was getting when the aliens were talking about Voltron!” Pigeon would get even later.

“Voltron-?!” Silverwing was immediately interested.

“Voltron, you were freaking out about that before they doped you!” Pigeon considered the map of pictures, “Luxfite, can you take us here? This may be where Voltron is being hidden!”

Luxfite glanced at Silverwing, but the dark stallion was entirely focused. He’d probably wander off into the desert in search if he didn’t guide him there. “Yeah.”

He kicked the other ponies out of his shack, holding Silverwing back for just a moment. Sunlit didn’t mind, he’d begun building a sensor-radar thing to help pinpoint the alien element once they were in the area, and the light was better on the porch. The other two followed him with relative ease.

Silverwing stared at him expectantly. Luxfite pulled an old cardboard box from under the couch. He pushed it at him with his nose, letting the contents speak for themselves.

Luxfite had saved a bunch of his old stuff, from thick sticks of eyeliner to his favorite vest. The latter didn’t fit, though, he’d gotten too broad in the chest. He didn’t have to try to know that. His hoof-wraps were in there, waiting for the day when he needed to write with a quill again.

Silverwing lifted the vest to see which book had been saved for him in the bottom of the box, when something heavy and metal fell out of his vest. Luxfite grinned sheepishly, though there was definitely pride glinting in his eyes.

“My necklace? But how-?”

“When you were separated from it, it reappeared back here.” Luxfite studied his hooves, “I asked for a couple of your things, the ones your mom didn’t want. I may have... borrowed. The necklace. With no intention of ever returning it to the Princesses.”

Silverwing scoffed softly. He slipped it on – it fit perfectly though his body had changed – and pulled Luxfite into a hug once his hooves were free. “As the older brother, I _should_ be scolding you for theft. I appreciate it though.”

“Anyone asks, you soundly reprimanded me.” Luxfite hugged him tightly in return.

* * *

Sunlit Honey took the lead with the hoof-made geiger counter. Pigeon Catcher was directly behind him, loaded with the power crystals and the satellite-dish-styled receptor. Luxfite could have told them which cave in the base of the massive sandstone relief. It hummed in his ears, just outside of the normal auditory range, but still perceptible. But they were having fun, and the science wasn’t leading them astray. There was no harm.

Silverwing looked mildly nervous, eyes to the sky. As though he expected aliens to drop out of the clouds at any moment. Or perhaps he was searching for some large, neon sign pointing to the alien weapon possibly hidden in the area.

The cave itself was cool, and sounded of moving water and waterfalls, though he’d never seen a drop. Likely it was underground. As promised, the walls, roof, and floor were covered with the rich blue carvings and paintings. While Pigeon and Sunlit wandered forward, he took the time to point out the painting that depicted the arrival of something from the stars amid the frolicking of a giant blue lion.

Azure considered the carvings in the mouth of the cave. They were far too vivid to be particularly old. Dyes and inks this bright deteriorated, and while blues lasted longest, not with the exposure these particular ones got. He had a sneaking suspicion ‘someone’ had probably touched them up at some point, maybe even added a couple of his own. He delicately dusted the nearest off with a flick of his tail. The edges were sharp and precise.

Then it started to glow. “Wha-” He backed off immediately, ears flattening. But his rear hoof hit another, which lit up as well. Then they were all lighting up, magic-bright. He was not alone in retreating to a dark, unmarked space.

“They’ve never done this before-” Luxfite’s wings flared defensively. They were too slow noticing a ring forming around their party, under and around. They didn’t react fast enough to a deep, resounding crack from the stone below them. The ground gobbled them up like a starving manticore.

They were dropped into an underground river – likely the one they’d heard earlier – and it rushed them off immediately. It split, but they all coursed down the right side, and were ejected into a high underground cavern. Falling into a shallow underground lake was terrifying and painful. Azure could still hear everyone’s screams echoing when he sat up. The cold water was draining the sting out off his flanks and sides. What really made the pain lessen was the sight of Luxfite dragging himself out of a deeper corner, looking very much a drowned rat.

His fur was apparently very dense, as he lost nearly half of himself when plastered flat.

Sunlit set Pigeon on the bank before clambering out himself. Pigeon, with all his electronics and crystals, was the driest of them. Sunlit was absolutely sodden in exchange, but well. Silverwing was in high spirits as he trotted free of the wet, and shook himself. Azure swore he heard an adrenaline-filled giggle.

“Getting out?” Sunlit asked gently, offering a hoof up.

“Nah, this is where I die. Thank you Luxy-boy~! We are slain by your dumb cave.” He posed dramatically.

He spluttered wetly in reply. Azure rolled his eyes, then leapt free easily. With a flash of his horn, he was warm and dry again. Sunlit was next, and nuzzled him in thanks once he was sorted. Pigeon barely needed it, but got it.

“Need a blowdry, Prince?” He asked, hopping over to the dark stallion on light hooves.

“I would appreciate it... Though if you wouldn’t mind, Luxfite may need it more. His fur is too thick to dry naturally. It’ll start to rot if left too long."

“He’s a chincilla?!” He was delighted by this information. He made short work of Silverwing’s sodden state, then bounded off to tease Luxfite.

“He has all kinds of handy spells.” Sunlit grinned, as he fixed his mane. Silverwing had to agree that this one, at least, was definitely appreciated. He calmed his forelock with his hoof. When he looked over again, Luxfite was a well dried ball of fluff, and Azure was dancing just out of reach. Azure had probably overdone the spell on purpose. What a tease.

“So where are we, and how do we get out?” Pigeon was asking the important questions.

“Let’s see.” He turned and studied the cavern. It branched off in several directions. But one was lit in the far distance by a blue hued light. “That one has the most light. It’ll likely be a way out.”

The logic was sound, so they followed him. Azure soon took the lead, galloping away from the thoroughly teased Luxfite. He was bent on vengeance until he collided with Azure, who’d stopped short.

Azure stared, barely noticing the collision. Before them, taking up most of an equally large cavern, was a massive being. It was recognizable as a large cat, probably a lion, but it was made entirely of metal and machinery. It was encased in a glowing blue bubble textured with scales. Before it, the other branch of the underground river spilled out into a deeper pond.

Luxfite passed him, agape. He took to the air, approaching at the cat’s eye level. Even so, Azure had the distinct impression that the feline had its eyes on him, personally.

He approached slowly enough that everypony else had caught up and overtaken him in their curiosity. Sunlit eyed his slow approach suspiciously.

“You okay?”

“Is it just me, or is that thing staring at us?”

“No,” Sunlit shook his head after a moment’s contemplation, “it’s just you.”

“Weird.” Azure hummed. Luxfite eventually landed, though his forehooves stayed firmly on the bubble.

“It’s got a pretty good defense force-field. I can’t break it, or get through.”

“Maybe you just have to knock?” Azure threaded through the others, eyes flicking up to the eyes watching him briefly. He tapped the force-field testingly. The second he made contact, it dissolved from the point of contact.

The group may have gaped at that, but in that moment every sense was overwhelmed. Filled with the presence of the lion before them. Its eyes shone with bright yellow light they’d lacked before, as it stood. It took to the air with a mighty leap, joining its four waiting and circling siblings. Together they ascended into space, accelerating through the clouds until they were no more than coloured beams of light. With a sudden flash, they became One.

And then they were all back in the cave, gaping at the unmoving lion. Its eyes still glowed bright.

“D-did anyone else see that-?” Luxfite asked, unable to tear his eyes from the lion.

“Voltron-” Silverwing breathed.

“I was thinking it _was_ Voltron, but no, this is just a part-!” Pigeon squeaked out, “Just one, of five-”

“Voltron is actually a giant _huge MASSIVE_ _**ROBOT**_! That is _so cool-_!” Sunlit was squealing, unashamed at his excitement. The Blue Lion seemed to approve of that sentiment, because it stood, and roared. The ponies and the cavern were rattled to their cores. Then it crouched, opening its mouth to expose a door and a tongue-like walkway.

Azure jumped at the chance while everyone else hesitated. He grinned as he entered, and found a one-person cockpit. There was more to the rear of the lion, but it was dark still, unimportant for now. The captain’s chair, in all its glory, was too tall for him. He jumped in anyways.

“Alright, here we go~” He savoured the feeling of control. He assumed it would be vetoed when the others joined him. But the chair – actually, more likely the lion itself – had other ideas. The chair adjusted itself, supporting his flanks to make hoof-free sitting easier, and scooting him into easy reach of the controls.

They lit up in a wave, coming to life before his eyes. The dark, opaque front cleared up, showing the cave around them. Blue purred warmly in his mind when his hooves took the control handles.

Oh.

Well, maybe he wouldn’t be vetoed from his seat. Blue disproved of that idea immensely. The others were slowly filtering in, awed and nervous. Creeping and flattened ears, wings loose and ready to fly. Even so, their hooves were loud on the steel. Azure couldn’t help the grin on his face in the least.

“This is crazy.” Pigeon was wild-eyed. Sunlit agreed, though he couldn’t seem to stand up straight just yet. His ears were broadcasting his trepidation.

“This is what the aliens have. All kinds of machines like this.” Silverwing murmured.

“Then why do they need this one?” Pigeon asked.

“Greed, power. Bragging rights. Voltron’s supposed to be legendary, the most powerful. Otherwise, your guess is as good as mine.”

“Fair,” Pigeon considered, “So what does this thing _do_?”

“Well, let’s see.” Azure considered himself, then pushed a sequence of buttons. Blue was all too happy to provide the proper order.

The floor lurched as she stood, and shook the rubble out of her cracks. Then she exploded free of her cavern, leaving behind the wall she’d stared at since her arrival. The ponies not sitting had to hold on for dear life. Azure crowed with laughter as she saw sunlight for the first time in eons, and his passengers screamed. Then they were off running across dusty plateaus and leaping rocky ravines.

“What are you doing?!” Luxfite demanded.

“Azure, for buck’s sake be careful! This isn’t the simulator!” Pigeon protested. Sunlit was crying from terror, but that was the norm.

“I’m barely doing anything! Flying Blue is like flying on autopilot, she flies herself!”

“If we _crash_ we are _dead_! This isn’t a _sim_!”

“Great, always crash that thing!” He chirped, and turned Blue for some graceful loop-de-loops, taking to the air. She was purring up a storm, so happy to be free, to be flying.

Nearby, two figures stood on the roof, staring through binoculars. Ivy Skies lowered them after a moment, passing them back. He glanced at his companion.

“What am I seeing right now?”

“Appears to be a giant, flying, blue lion, Sir.” So he wasn’t hallucinating due to stress.

“Send for the Princess of Friendship and her entourage.”

“You! Are! The WORST! PILOT! EVER!” Luxfite screamed as they rose into the clouds. He danced among them for a few topsy-turvy minutes, until a pinging noise caught his attention.

Blue turned skywards again, and zipped free of the atmosphere. Once they were in orbit, it became very clear what was attracting her attention.

As they paused over the marble of blue, gold, green and white, the stars seemed to stretch into long, thin lines. They warped for a long second, then snapped back into place, bringing something with them. A spaceship miles long was at the very heart of what had distorted.

Azure’s first impression was of a cleaver. A massive, violently purple, glowy cleaver that seemed to loom disaster long before it did anything.

“Aliens-” Pigeon breathed to his right.

“By the sisters, they’re here-” Sunlit whimpered. “Quick, Azure, give them the lion, that’s what they’re here for right? Maybe they’ll take it, and leave, and not bug us again!”

“What- Honey!” Azure hated the idea. But the betrayal in his voice was quickly overshadowed.

“No.” Silverwing was shaking. Quivering, really, with contained rage and contempt. “No, the Galra aren’t the sort to be satisfied with just getting what they want. We give them the lion? Put another weapon in their claws? They’re insatiable in their greed for the universe. We may as well just slap the whole of Terrein in chains while we’re at it.”

Sunlit, cowed, nodded weakly at the outburst. Azure considered his console, then turned up to the Prince. “You’re the senior most officer, Highness. What would you have us do?” Nothing was a better option than surrendering.

Silverwing considered the ship quietly. His ears flicked several times in thought. “Catch their attention. Try and lead them away.”

Azure nodded. Blue loved the idea. She immediately filled his head with ideas and plans, sequences that would do exactly that. The others had to hold on, as they lunged forward. Blue was a cat on a mouse, if mice were 7 or 8 times the size of a cat. Poor analogy, but she, with Azure at her helm, barraged the ship with laser blasts until the hull began to pop with explosions as big as she. Then she raced forward, and rent the weakened hull with her mighty claws, causing further fires and explosions.

Then she dashed away.

It took long enough that Azure was considering a second attack, but then the purple cleaver started to come about. It turned faster than he thought it would, and they had to make like rabbits.

Space was vast and dark. But Blue sped through it with such calm precision that he couldn’t help but feel safe. Even as the Galra ship kept a hot pursuit.

Terrein vanished behind them quickly. Azure watched the feed of it shrinking, becoming a speck of light amidst the rest, then finally vanishing under the brighter lights of the universe. Something in his stomach told him he wouldn’t be seeing home for a long, long time.

Silverwing leaned forward, confused, some minutes later. “Is that... That’s Kerberos!” The tiny moon gleamed, innocent of any crime. The other ponies gaped freely. “How, it took us 6 moons of travel to reach this deep!?”

“Super advanced alien spaceship?” was the only offered explanation. Pigeon frowned at a suddenly glowing button. Azure pressed it before he could.

Blue roared, and brought a massive, swirling vortex in neon blues into existence. Azure felt his horn tingle with slight exertion, though he wasn’t currently casting. “What is that?”

Blue didn’t answer him. She just urged him to go through, and be quick, the Galra were gaining on them.

“I... What _is_ that?” Silverwing didn’t answer. He couldn’t.

“I’m not getting a clear answer off Blue, she just wants us to continue. She’d like us to go through.”

“Wait, the robot’s sentient?!” Honey shrieked. No one looked very comfortable at the idea.

“Like I said, She’s practically flying herself here! Prince Silverwing, should we?”

“We don’t have a lot of options...” The proxy warnings were pretty clear to him. “But whatever we do, we’re a team now. We should decide together.”

There was definite hesitance in everypony’s eyes, but one by one they all nodded. That was good enough for Azure. He carefully maneuvered into the swirling vortex. It vanished once he had, leaving behind ship and system, and leaving behind Home.


	3. ARUS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Handy dandy name chart:  
> Lance | Azure-Blue  
> Keith | Luxfite  
> Shiro | Prince Silverwing  
> Pidge | Pigeon Catcher  
> Hunk | Sunlit Honey

Travelling through the vortex was as bad as he’d suspected. The Blue Lion vibrated and spun, flying at a speed that was almost sickening. Azure had the easiest of it, in his padded seat. His hooves threatened to slip from the handlebars, but that was more due to the ponies gripping him for dear life.

They screamed and cried. Honey had his horn, while Pigeon clung to his right foreleg. Silverwing had resorted to gripping the chair and the roof, since Luxfite was not tall enough to reach the latter and depended entirely on the former for support.

Azure vaguely wondered if there weren’t chairs in the back section that he hadn’t checked. Blue laughed at her passengers, and in glee. When they exploded out the far end of the vortex, it vanished behind them, leaving them hanging in darkened space.

Instead of Kerberos on the horizon, there was a blue, green and gold marble of a planet. It took little more than a glance to prove it not Terrein. The landmass was all wrong.

Honey groaned, and collapsed. He was very green. Azure could smell bile, but there was no visible evidence. He smiled down at Honey, slightly sheepish. Poor guy.

“So... where are we?” Luxfite asked. Silverwing lowered down carefully, and eased over to the window. He studied the stars intently. Pigeon joined him with wide eyes.

“I don’t recognize any of these constellations.” He announced. They hadn’t moved between Terrein and Pluto. “We’re very, very far away.” Azure frowned at that.

“Where did your dumb flying skills land us, Azure?” Luxfite demanded. “Where did this stupid robot take us?!”

“I dunno, hasn’t said.” Azure shrugged. Pigeon returned to his side, closely followed by Silverwing.

“Well, where does it want us to go next?” Pigeon didn’t look any more impressed than Luxfite. “Also, what are we dealing with? Artificial intelligence? Or a soul trapped in a machine?”

“Please tell me Blue isn’t haunted.” Sunlit picked himself up for that.

“I couldn’t tell you. Let’s see...” He reached out to Blue with both questions, and only got an answer to the first. “I think... I think she’s taking us home. To _her_ home, specifically.”

The planet below them was her target, if nothing else. They entered the atmosphere at a calm pace. There was no sign of intellegent life that they saw, as they passed over mountains and hills, following a snaking river to the ocean. The cliffsides were barren, until there was a massive, white castle plopped on a crest overlooking the waves.

A bridge led up to the castle, though it crumbled with age. The castle itself seemed whole and pristine. They approached the magnificence. As they passed through the outer spires, four in number, the tips flashed. Then the castle’s points and lines began to glow the same blue that Blue wore. They landed before the door in a wave of dust.

The door was large enough to permit Blue herself. But she lowered her head and let them out just before the grand entrance.

“I want you all to stay close.” Silverwing warned as they landed. “Stay close, and be very, very cautious.”

“Why, do you see anything off?” Azure hadn’t spotted anything himself. Blue hadn’t warned him of anything.

“Not yet. But we are on an Alien Warship. The owners might be upset we took it. I’ve already lost one crew, I’m not about to lose another.”

* * *

The planet was breathable. The air was cool with seaside breeze, though the smell of the ocean was entirely wrong. The unfamiliar brine wasn’t unpleasant, though.

The five ponies clumped together as a herd. They minded one another’s flanks. Blue waited until they were nearly to the door before rising back up. Sunlit spooked at her sudden movement.

“I was right- she’s gunna eat us!!” He shrieked. Instead she just roared, causing the front door to open in a wave of light. Azure laughed at him as he passed where he’d hidden under his own hooves.

“Aw, Honey-Hunks,” He cooed, “she was just unlocking the door for us!”

“Wha- oh.” He stood again, sheepish. “Sorry for judging you, then!”

“It’s a robot, Sunlit.” Pigeon teased lightly. “Robots don’t eat things, they’re fueled. With crystals and electricity and stuff.”

“Now, I see where you’re coming from. But I’ll have you know, Pigeon,” He flushed darkly all the same, “but this is an ALIEN robot. And we’re ponies. Solid sources of Protein and Lipids, as well as elements such as iron, carbon, potassium, and zinc. And who knows what this thing uses for fuel. You could power some things for moons on a pony my size.” Pigeon just judged him.

Inside the castle was massive, but dark. They entered slowly, eyes and ears alert. There were no signs of life, just dust. But as they entered the room, keeping centered and tight knit, lights began to come on. Wall sconces activated in pairs, on opposite sides of the room. Lighting more efficiently than one would think with such small lights.

When their hooves hit the center, the floor itself lit up.

“Hold for Identity Scan.” A voice stated. It leaned female, but there was no one in sight. They froze, looking about wildly for the speaker. Rings of light rose up their heights, before vanishing. The floor returned to normal.

“What do you want?! We’re not here to fight!” Luxfite was always ready to fight, now was no exception. There was no answer, just a center hall that lit up, two sconces at a time.

Sunlit peered around them, eyeing the stairwells leading away and forward.

“Hello?” He called loud enough for it to echo. The others stared at him. “What? The stairs are barely big enough for us. They’re super tiny. There’s no way the aliens are more giant robot lions.”

“Still,” Silverwing shook himself loose. He moved forward first. “I suppose we’re meant to go this way?” The lit hall looked innocent enough, devoid of any visible threats or traps.

“Do you want me to scout ahead? Look for danger?” Luxfite offered, wings already flared and ready.

“No, we stay together.” Silverwing vetoed immediately.

The hall led to a massive stairwell, that seemed to span the entire height of the ship. The sconces led them higher and deeper into the ship, into more sweeping halls. All the while, Honey called out greetings every few minutes. It wasn’t until they arrived in a massive, circular room that the lights stopped taking them places. The sunken floor was surrounded by pillars, and marked with circles in an even-spaced ring. In the very center, a podium rose from the ground, lighting up once it was at full height. It wasn’t huge, but it did come up to Sunlit’s chin.

Pigeon and Sunlit inspected it curiously, eyeing the glowing symbol. Luxfite lagged slightly, using a pillar to guard his one flank as he surveyed the room. Silverwing kept with Azure, who’d pressed forward to inspect one of the circles on the floor.

A sudden sharp hiss spooked them all. Pneumatics opened two adjacent circles, pushing two egg-shaped pods into the room. Azure leapt forward. He was just short of Silverwing’s protective spread, but but not so far away that he couldn’t escape behind it in a moment’s notice.

The first pod opened in a blast of icy steam. Azure reached out and grabbed the alien automatically. They had fallen, as though still asleep.

They began to stir a moment later. Blue-pink eyes were hazy as they opened, trying to focus on Azure’s face. Their fluffy white mane hung in their eyes. He fixed it gently with magic. Oh, a crown! Royal Alien!

“Father?” They breathed. “What- where am I?” Their hooves were weird and grippy, more like dragon claws, without the claw part. “Who are you?”

The alien that had her was furred in a dense, light blue. Brown hair fell nearly to darker blue eyes, around a spiralling, horn-like structure between its brows. Their hair seemed to boast a silky smoothness that promised care measured in vargas, not doboshes. When they grinned, it was the grin of an interested party. A flirt.

“The name’s Azure-Blue, and you’re safe in my hooves.” This wouldn’t do at all.

Other aliens, in varying colours, stood nearby. She shifted slightly, disguising the movement as a quest for balance rather than a solid foundation.

“What-” she paused for dramatic effect, “your ears...”

“My... ears?” They flicked. He looked confused, unsure.

“What’s _wrong_ with them, they’re hideous?” Half step back,

“Eh-? What’s- they're fine! They heard exactly what you saaAH!” Grab, twist, and push. Got him, just as vain as predicted. She pulled his arm (leg?) back, behind his back. The shoulder popped slightly at the angle, threatening dislocation if not actually pulling out just yet. She forced him lower with it. She had a hostage now, instead of being one.

“Who are you, and what are you doing in my castle?!” She was in control now, and she asked the questions. She demanded the answers.

“We- we were brought here!” Her hostage whimpered under her. “We were brought here, by the Blue Lion!” She grabbed his horn, raising his head.

“The blue lion?! Why do you have it? Where is its paladin?!”

Silverwing had no doubts that she would injure if she didn’t get her answers. He rose up on his hind legs, flaring his wings wide. He was briefly distracted by the appearance of a second alien, who immediately raised the alarm and moved to defend the royal. Yelling about enemy assailants. Good reflexes on that one.

The metal of his foreleg was too much weight to really try for flight. But his voice took on the necessary vibrations at once.

“Everyone, Wait!” The Equestrian Voice echoed freely, interrupting all. The aliens turned their attentions to him, ears twitching in his direction. “Please,” he continued at a more reasonable level, “I am Prince Silverwing, Ambassador of Harmony. I and my companions come in peace.”

The royal straightened as he spoke, eyeing him warily. “I am Princess Allura of Altea.”

“A pleasure. I apologize for the confusion; we were brought here by the Blue Lion. There was no sign of another. Other than that, I am afraid we do not know.”

“I see. Excuse me, I must know how long I have slept.” None of them dared block her sweeping form as she approached the podium. Her hands pressed to the glowing mark, and multiple screens appeared at her touch.

“So that’s how that works.” Pigeon stuck his nose in to see better, though he had to stand on the very tips of his hind hooves to see over the high side of the podium. Allura felt her lip quirk at the genuine curiosity from the smallest, green alien. But she kept quiet and focused.

The orange-pink alien eased his way down beside Azure instead. Azure’s eyes were shut, as he rubbed at his abused horn, so it wasn’t surprising when he spooked at the alien’s touch.

“Are you alri-” He started, only to get a hoof to the face.

“NO TOUCHY! NO GRABBY OR Flippy or Ju-jitsuy, or-” Azure was fully prepared to defend himself this time, but entirely unprepared for the crack of bone under his hoof. The alien pulled away sharply, clutching his nose as blood began to flow. The bright teal was surprising to say in the least. “Oh, oh Celestia, are you alright?”

Obviously not, but “Yes, yes, I’m fine,” he stated through teal stained gloves. “Must’ve just gotten some frost on the reflexive lobes, nothing to worry about.”

“I’m sorry,” Azure called up his magic, “I can’t really fix bone or cartilage, or whatever, you’ll have to set it, but this should stop the bleeding at least.”

“Oh, a handy trick that is!” He pulled his hands free to find himself no longer leaking. “Thank you.” He paused, then chuckled lightly. “No wonder the Princess sought to neutralize you first. Quintessence manipulation is nothing to sneeze at.”

“Of course.” He didn’t remember the blood-cleaning spell. “What’s a Q-”

“Coran.” The Princess gasped, distress shaking her to her core, “Coran it’s been 10,000 phoebs!”

“What-?” He was on his feet immediately. “10,000-?!”

“10,000. And Altea,” She was clearly fighting tears and more, “Altea is gone. It’s been destroyed.”

**Author's Note:**

> Ill get to arting this thing as time goes on, but for now, refs and pics can be found [Here](http://www.theponydins.tumblr.com)


End file.
